US-China trade spat won’t affect Philippines — Palace

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang has expressed confidence that the Philippines will not be adversely affected by the trade spat between the United States and China after Beijing imposed tariffs on about $3 billion worth of US imports last week.

“As far as I am concerned, while this will have an impact, I doubt if the Philippines will suffer the greatest impact because we are only a small player in the whole of ASEAN,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said in a briefing in Leyte yesterday. 

“We are one of those who have lesser trade between ASEAN countries and China. So I doubt the wisdom of that statement, it did not come from the government and we will verify that information,” he added.

Roque was referring to reports that the US-China trade spat might affect ASEAN countries, especially the Philippines.

US-China trade tensions stepped up another notch after US President Donald Trump instructed the US trade representative to consider imposing an extra $100 billion in tariffs on Chinese goods. 

China responded by indicating it wouldn’t back down, saying it would fight back “at any cost,” according to a statement from the Commerce Ministry. 

The surprise move was a further escalation of the deepening dispute between the world’s two biggest economies, which just days earlier announced plans for $50 billion in import duties on each other’s goods.

The earlier tariff threats roiled financial markets but they rebounded Thursday on investor hopes the US and China would find a diplomatic solution.